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Brief Synopsis

In the Gulf of Mexico, off Florida's Key West, Jim "Brooklyn" Gannon, the owner of a fleet of rental fishing boats, smuggles valuable jewelry. After placing the jewelry into a hot water bottle, Brooklyn floats it out onto the water, where another boat quickly picks it up. Later, he returns to his shop and is kidnapped by some men working for gangster H. G. Danziger. They take him to Danziger's hideout, where the gangster offers him $2,000 to smuggle some machine guns onto a ship bound for Havana, Cuba. That evening, in the gulf, Brooklyn contacts Capt. Koretsky of the S.S. Dardanelles and boards his vessel. Koretsky gives Brooklyn an envelope containing $30,000 in cash, when suddenly, Danziger's secretary, Mae Leggett, who says that her name is "Miss Higgins," and her brother Frank step from their hiding place. They explain that Danziger has sent them to insure that the money reaches him safely. Mae, Frank and Brooklyn then return to Brooklyn's boat, where Mae and Frank take Brooklyn's wallet and demand at gun-point that he jump overboard. He does so, and Mae and Frank begin their journey back to Key West. Due to dense fog blanketing the Gulf, however, they become lost, while the boat is found beached some time later. The next morning, Brooklyn is rescued by boat owner Capt. Corcoris and his son Philip. They take him back to their home, Tarpon Springs, where he meets Mrs. Corcoris, Philip's sister Angelike, and his crippled brother Christopher. Later, Capt. Corcoris explains that Christopher suffered decompression sickness after he went sponge diving in the lagoon and was attacked by sharks. When Brooklyn phones his assistant "Rummy" Davis back in Key West, Rummy says that Danziger's men have been looking for him. In the meantime, Mae has hidden the money and told Danziger that Brooklyn is responsible for the theft. Later, Brooklyn and Philip decide to team up for a village contest, in which team members take turns diving for a solid gold crucifix after a member of the clergy tosses it into the bay. After Brooklyn wins the contest, Mrs. Corcoris gives him her crucifix pendant to wear for good luck. Back in Key West, Brooklyn is shot twice and, although one bullet enters his leg, Mrs. Corcoris's crucifix deflects the second one, saving his life. Brooklyn limps back to the boat where the Corcoris men are about to leave for two months of fishing. When Angelike, who was an army nurse during the war, sees Brooklyn's condition, she decides to join them on the trip so that she can remove the bullet. After they return, Brooklyn promises Angelike that he will return for her after he goes to see Danziger. When he phones Danziger and demands that he and his secretary meet with him, Mae becomes frightened and phones Frank. When Danziger and Mae arrive at the dock, Brooklyn orders them aboard his boat, and they depart. Once at sea, Brooklyn then tells Danziger that he has been double-crossed by Mae and that Capt. Koretsky, who is waiting in the gulf, will corroborate his story. When Danziger questions Mae, she confesses, but Frank suddenly appears and shoots Danziger. After Mae accidentally shoots Frank, Brooklyn returns to Tarpon Springs to be with Angelike.